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The Benefits of Taking a Maine Vacation

“Most of us know intuitively that taking a break is good for us, but you may be surprised to know that a number of studies have confirmed the health-enhancing effects of vacations.” That’s what Dr. Mel Borins says. He’s a family physician and a travel and health writer. Here’s what some of the research shows:

1. Live Longer: Research done on 749 women aged 45-64 in Framingham, MA showed both homemakers and women who worked outside the home who took fewer vacations had a significant increase in the risk of heart attacks. Homemakers who took vacations once every six years or less had almost twice the risk of developing a heart attack as homemakers who took vacations two or more times per year.
2. Maintain Brain Cells: James Sands, from the South Coast Institute for Applied Gerontology, studied 112 women, aged 65-92 and found that there was a relationship between more stressful life events and a decline in intellectual functioning. However, there was a positive relationship between vacations and intellectual functioning.
3. Increase Life Satisfaction: The University of Tennessee Department of Psychology surveyed 128 employees before and after vacation. They found that there was an increase in life satisfaction after the vacation.
4. Decrease Burnout: External stresses and life events leave us feeling overwhelmed, tired, discouraged, disinterested, and even uncaring. Researchers at Tel Aviv University found that feelings of all 76 employees studied decreased significantly during their vacations.
5. Improve Family Life: Reported in Science Journal 1968, researchers analyzed the responses of 390 steel workers to an extended vacation. Workers reported more interactions and shared activities with spouses and children. 25% of the respondents felt that their work efficiency increased and that their jobs were more interesting after a vacation.
6. Reduce Job Stress: Two recent studies have each clearly demonstrated that an annual vacation significantly defuses job stress and cuts risks of most diseases by 20-30 percent the following year. An ongoing trial of 12,000 American men revealed that, during the five-year study, those who had the most vacations had a 20% lower risk of dying from any cause than those who took the fewest vacations. A similar Dutch study in 1999 provided similar results.

There is something therapeutic about getting away from the stresses of home and work. Every vacation has unique merits. For some people, an organized one week package or a weekend or holiday getaway can have lasting benefits. Leave the stresses of life at home, and come to Maine, the way life should be. You owe it to your health.